Thanks to a number of people, namely Claire and Hart and Kris whom have inspired me to start running. I enjoy it as it’s a pretty affordable way of keeping fit. Just put on your shoes (as well as running bras for us ladies) and run.
Speaking of running bras, I found one in Decathlon for 10€ and it’s awesome!
The past year, I’ve participated in a number of events like the Maratona Stafetta, the Corsa dei Santi and the Corsa di Miguel events. As well as the Maratona di Roma, which I blogged about in 2010 and 2011.
I really enjoyed the event the first time I went there, the second time seemed less enjoyable but still acceptable and finally this year, it was the last straw for me.
First the registration process was super annoying. We were supposed to be in Palazzo dei congressi for registration. Cart and I were not interested in looking at any other booths there. Our idea was to head to the registration area and get out. However after we’ve registered, and made our way towards where we entered, we were blocked by the minders who insisted that we follow and carry on with the path.
We were completely flummoxed. “The exit is right over there!” We pointed. We just wanted to get out of there. It didn’t make sense that we had to walk ALL around the maze when we could just get out at the beginning.
I was getting upset. We were forced to walk through ALL the booths (and they were not that cheap either). The fact that all the paths were cordoned so that NO ONE could have a short cut made it even more off putting.
And during the event itself, it wasn’t very satisfying for us as it was extremely crowded. Which might be festive for some, but it was much too claustrophobic for me. It seems like every year the event managed to get more and more participants. And yet strangely, there were very little street performers this year. Not to mention that the refreshments at the end were really laughable. Which makes me wonder, where do all the money go?
I understand that this is an event for charity, but we were volunteering our money and our time and we deserve a little more respect than that. With absolutely no malice intended, but I really feel unsatisfied and I don’t think that I’d participate again next year.
On the other hand, I had a ton of fun at the Roma Ostia run earlier this year. Like Maratona di Roma, we had to register in a big palazzo in Eur.
But as far as I noticed, while there were loads of booths, there were no barricades and we never felt like we were pressured to see all the sponsors.
The air felt a lot more calmer.
During the event, while we had a bit of a challenge getting to the location in the beginning, but we soon managed to get ourself on the right path and joined the runners just in the nick of time.
The fact that there weren’t crazy mass of people, made the run much more calm, cozy and relaxing. It made me appreciate my ‘hood, more up close and personal.
While there weren’t any street performers, there were a noticeable number of marshals at random corners who were shouting words of encouragements to the runners. Something that I really appreciated.
And these were our refreshments that we got at the end of our run.
I didn’t really expect much, as registration fee was 5€. But I was pleasantly surprised to find out that the freebies that we got, was much more worth it. All these AND a branded tshirt for about half of what it costs to register at the maratona di Roma. I just felt much more appreciated here.
And on top of that, we had medals too.
This one, I’d be more than happy to participate again next year.